Geneva and Munich info

You'd get more responses if you post this in the Germany section for Munich and the Switzerland section for Geneva.

“Close to the train station” is not the best location in Munich. There are lots of hotels around there, but not much in the way of good eating places or beer gardens. It used to be pretty darn seedy, though that had changed the last time we were there (4 years ago). The hotel we like there, just for 1 night, is Schiller5.

But really the best area is near Marienplatz and the Viktulienmarkt, and the pedestrian zone there. Lots of choices and variety for eating and drinking. You can take the S-Bahn to the main railway station (or walk in 20-30 minutes, depending on your exact location).

Geneva hotels are very expensive. When we are flying out of Geneva or passing through the train stations hthere, we stay on a smaller, more charming town along the lake. Last time it was Morges, and we enjoyed that. Train into Geneva was about 30 minutes, as I recall.

Morges and the Audrey Hepburn connection:

https://www.morges-tourisme.ch/en/V1243/in-the-footsteps-of-audrey-hepburn

For Munich, I'd recommend staying in the Old Town area, close to an S-train station. We had a wonderful experience at the Hotel Der Torbrau, a historical building with a great location, in 2016. There was an S-train station across the street.
Safe travels!

if you haven't already, look up Rick's advice about Geneva. Which is basically, skip it.

Why don't you go back thru Switzerland, visit Montreaux/Laussanne, then up to Basel, to delightful Strasbourg? I believe there's a fast train from Strasbourg to Paris. Safe travels!

I am with Pat re Hotel Torbräu. It is easy to get to from the airport - Isartor S-bahn stop. It is within easy walking of Marienplatz and the Viktualienmarkt (and adjacent sights) - 5-10 minutes. There is an ATM close by, a small grocery, a restaurant on site and one immediately next door with outdoors seating. There are little bakeries across the street. There are numerous restaurants in the area, and with a map, you will find an easy short-cut to the Hofbräuhaus. On the far side of Viktualianmarkt is Eataly. Dallmayr is off Marienplatz.

RS uses this hotel for the Munich, Salzburg, Vienna tour. Until I took this tour (twice) I was not familiar with this location. It is so much better than the area around the main train station. It is easy to walk to the main train station if you want to do that to get to the train to Salzburg - if you took a few minutes, you could figure out how to get on the S-bahn or U-bahn in Isartor and go to the Hauptbahnhof. The day I needed Hauptbahnhof, I walked - maybe 25 minutes.

I lived in Munich way back in student days and was not familiar with this area. Now, it is my hotel and area of choice.

When I did the MSV tour in December 2016, the group stayed in the Hotel am Victualienmarkt, a small but comfortable hotel, typical RIck Steves style, and less expensive than many others. We liked it so well, we returned for a couple days after the Eastern Europe tour and are booking there again for a few days before our June 2022 My Way Alpine tour. http://www.hotel-am-viktualienmarkt.de/EN/index.php

I have also stayed at the nearby Hotel Blauer Bock, another small hotel, and would recommend that place as well. https://hotelblauerbock.de/

I will add to Debbie’s comments and say I enjoyed the Hotel Torbräu. The area was convenient to shops and eateries. We were on the same Munich Salzberg Vienna tour in December 2019, my last time in Europe! The breakfast spread was amazing in the variety of food offered and so delicious. I have my eye on the Alpine My Way tour too.

If you have the time, a night in Geneva is not a bad idea. The city centre is pretty compact, so you could e.g. stay somewhere close to Rhône and be close to most things of interest. As well as walking distance to the railway station for the trip to Paris.

I'll add my two thumbs up to the Hotel Blauer Bock. Great location and very comfortable.

Thank you for all the great tips!